One experience almost every parent shares is an overwhelming amount of crayons. Those old, dirty, broken crayons your kids don’t use anymore don’t have to go in the trash. There are other options! Check them out here.
Make new crayons
Why buy a new box when you can just reshape your old crayons? All you need to do is gather up all of the crayons you would have tossed and sort them by color (this part is optional if you don’t care that the colors mix).
Once you have them sorted, remove and discard the paper wrappers. Chop the crayons into small pieces and pour them into a muffin tin. You can also purchase silicon molds to get different shapes. There are even crayon shaped molds!
Bake the tin/mold for 15-20 minutes on 250 F, remove from the oven and allow the wax to cool and harden. Now you have clean, and practically new crayons for all your child’s artistic needs.
Make a candle
Making your own candle is a little more work than making new crayons, but it’s a fun weekend activity your kids will enjoy.
What you need:
- A container for your candle. Get as creative as you want to with this!
- A double boiler
- Candle wax
- Candlewicks
- Crayons
- Wax paper
- Fragrance (optional)
First, clean your containers and make sure they’re dry. Next, insert a candlewick in the center of the container (if you don’t have the ones with the metal disk on the end, simply tape the wick to a pencil and balance across the top of your container so that the wick hangs down). Then place the containers on a sheet of wax paper to catch any spills.
Chop your wax into little pieces so it melts easier. Fill the first pan of your double boiler with water and the inner pan with your wax. Heat over medium and allow the wax to completely melt.
Next, add whatever color crayon you want to candle to be. Add the crayons in bits until the color is a shade you like. Once you are happy with the color, you can add your fragrance.
Remove the inner pan from the boiler, and carefully pour the wax into your containers. Be careful to leave enough of the wick showing to burn. Once filled, leave the candle alone to dry and completely harden.
Melted art
Sometimes a little mess can be beautiful. Make a melted candle poster that really stands out.
What you will need:
- A poster board
- Tape
- A hair dryer
- Crayons
First, decide on what shape you want to be left on your board. This should be something simple and easy to distinguish. You could do a heart or even your child’s initials. Draw out your shape on the board and cover everything inside the outline with tape.
Next, decide what colors you want to surround your outline and line them up at the top of your poster, gluing them down.
Grab your hairdryer and set it on high heat. Simply point the flow of air to the crayon line and watch as the wax melts down the board.
Once the wax has dripped all the way to the bottom of your tape, stop melting the wax and let your board dry. Once dry you can peel off the tape, and you will be left with a clean image in the middle of a colorful wax background.
